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PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Steelers played with their full complement of starters on offense for the first time during the preseason Friday night in New Orleans, and the coaches had to like what they saw in the 27-14 victory. Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, receiver Antonio Brown and running back Le'Veon Bell looked like they were in midseason form, an encouraging sign for an offense with the stated goal of averaging 30 points per game this season.
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Roethlisberger was 12 for 17 for 148 yards and two touchdown passes in his only two series. Brown had four catches for 87 yards and a touchdown and Bell added 21 yards rushing on three carries and five catches for 37 yards.
"Our offense played great," Roethlisberger said. "We were able to execute, move the ball and score and that's what we set out to do. We did a good job changing plays at the line of scrimmage and all the guys were on the same page while we were out there. When you are up-tempo like that you can slow a defense down. They can't always do the things they want to do. Our line loves it when we play like that. And when they have success, we have success."
Coach Mike Tomlin, who watched his team be outscored 47-17 without his stars in the first two preseason games, said the first-team offense's performance was encouraging.
"It was a good performance on a lot of fronts," Tomlin said. "Some of the men and significant players had an opportunity to play for the first time. They played in the manner which we expect them to play. More importantly than that, we put together a plan this week and I saw a better execution of that plan. That was a good step forward this week in terms of the play reflecting the preparation.
"It was a good night for us. It was good to get Ben some action. A.B., Le'Veon and all of those guys. It was a good, collective group effort. It was a necessary performance for us at this juncture. I'm excited about moving forward and starting the preparation for Carolina as we continue to work this thing that is called preseason."
Unfortunately for the Steelers, they'll have to wait until October before all the stars are back together again. Tomlin is not expected to play his starters for more than a series, if at all, in the final preseason game Thursday at Carolina. After that game, Bell must serve a three-game suspension.
"I feel really good and I'm real glad I had a chance to carry and catch the ball out there," said Bell, who played in a game for the first time since tearing the PCL and MCL in his left knee Nov. 1. "I got into a rhythm early and I didn't have to think about (my knee) at all. And I got hit a few times and fell to the ground and got back up quick allowing me to shake off the rust a little bit. I just felt good.
"Obviously I want to be a guy who's out there taking advantage of all situations and I'm glad Ben called my number throwing me the ball. I think I caught five or six balls and that's what I want to do. I'm a guy who can run and catch the ball and that's what will help our team win. We were clicking out there on all cylinders. If we could just take away some of the penalties, I think we'd be ready to start the season right now."
DeAngelo Williams, who rushed for 907 yards last season when Bell missed 10 games, will step in as the starting running back until Bell can return Week 4 against Kansas City.
